Key-action



Patented Nov. 23,1920.

W. C.REED.

KEY ACTION.

APPLICATION mio ocr. 25, 1916.

UNITED STATES PATENT orFicE,

WALTER C. REED, OF DALTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNORYTO PHILIP W. GOEWEY, 0F PITTSFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

' 'KEY-Admon.

Be it known that I. WALTER C. Renn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Dalton, in the county ofv Berkshire and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and 'useful Improvements in Key- Actions, of which the following .is a speciicatiou.

My invention relates to key actions tor musical instruments in which .the various tones are sounded through the agency ot'. electric circuits controlled by the several keys ot a key board, and is particularly intended to provide an improved rkey action for pipe organs of the character just referred to. In such actions it is desirable, in order to secure certainty and smoothness in the pla-ying of the instrument, to have'the parts so constructed that a greater pressure will be required to commence the depression of va key than to continue its downward y movement or to hold it in the depressedposiand it is also desirable to have this tion i the same for all keys, :so

pressure exactly that the touch will be uniform. present invention provides a key action having the characteristics :above referred to and also having certain other V,advantageous features hereinafter described.

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure l is a plan view showing several adjacent key actions embodying my invention, as preferablyv constructed; and

Fig.r 2 is a side elevation of one of the actions illustrated in Fig. 1.

In Fig. 1 ofthe drawing, I yhave illus-` trated in part three consecutive organ keys 2, of which the rear portionsonlyare shown for the reason that the keys may be ofsany suitable construction. In :the present case each key '2 is pivotally supported between its ends in the kusual manner, so that when its front end is depressed its rear endwill be elevated, and itis to be assumed that-each key in the key board is provided with an action like that hereinafter described.

The circuit-controlling devices operated by the keys 2 are represented :as consisting of spring contact ywires'or fingers 3 secured at their rear ends to a wooden strip 4 whereby they are sufficiently insulated fromy yone anotherk and from whichl they extend yforward over -a metallic contact bar 5 carried by insulated brackets of which one is shown The pad 1Q secured thereto.

y Specicaton of Letters Patent. Painted N0v 23 192() Application led .October 25, 1916. Serial No. 127,569.

bar 5 whenever a short silver sleeve 9 carried by the wire 3 makes contact with said e bar, thelatter being supplied with current from any suitable source. Any desired number ot' wires il, from one upward, may be employed in connection with each key f2, but ordinarilylthere are several such wires for each key, for reasons which are not materialjto the invention herein set forth.

Thel spring action of the wires 3 is such that they tend to make contact with the bar 5, but Anormally the several wires 3 corresponding to each key are held out-ot contact with the bar 5 by'means of lever l0, the rear end of which extends horizontally beneaththe free ends oi" said wires and carries a sleeve ll of felt or the like on which the wires rest, while its front end is supported by the rea-r end of'thecorresponding key 2, resting preferably-Ona felt or leather Between its ends each lever l() is mounted on atransverselyextending pivot '13 carried by a bracket 14 which is secured tothe front iaceoi3 the support k7 and also carries a screw 'l5 passing through and vertically adjustable ina laterally extending flange on the top of the bracket, said screwbeing provided with a lock nut 16 for maintaining it in any given position of adjustment. To the lower end of the screw 15 is attached the rear endoi. a-

tensionA spring 17 which extends forward vbelow the pivot 13 and is attached at 'its rthe .front end of any key is depressed in the act of playing the elevation of its rear end acts through its lever 10 to lower the corresponding wires 3 vinto Contact with the bar 5, thus completing the several circuits through said wires and causing the pipes controlled thereby to be sounded, subject to such further control as may be provided elsewhere.

It will be evident that as the rear end of any kev rises the torce exerted by the corresponding spring l? on its leve-r l0 and tending to move the forward en d of the latter downward will continually grow less, due to the approach of the spring to a dead center position with respect to the pivotal axis oi the lever. The parts are so arranged, however, that this dead center position is never actually reached, but the spring at all times exerts suiscient torce Vou the lever to elevate the Vlfront end of the corresponding kev when the latter is released. It follows that when the front end ot the key depressed in playing the ir., truinent, the torce required to depress it is greatest at the beginning of the depression and thereafter decreases until the key is fully depressed, Uniforinity oii action of all the keys is obtained by means of the screws l5, by the upward or downward adjustment oi' which the leverage o the corresponding springs IT on their levers l() may be minutely varied and caused to be exactly alike with respect to the effect ofthe several springs on the respective keys.

It will be seen that my invention provides a key action which not only has the desirable characteristics above rererred to but is also simple and inexpensive in construction, very compact, is easily adjust-ed with great accuracy, and is not likely .to have its ad'nstment disturbed or otherwise get out ot order. My key action also has the advantages that the organ keys do not have to be provided with special parts other than the pads l2 and are not mechanically connected to the parts which they operate, so that all the parts ci the action can be assembled and then applied to an existing keybank without diiliculty and any key can be taken out for repairs without disturbing the action. l

lllhile prefer to employ the spring wire contacts illust-rated for the purpose of controlling the respective electric circuits it will be understood that various other forms of circuit controllers may be employed instead, if desired, and that the construction ot the action may be modified in various ways without departing from my invention.

I claim:

l. ln a key action. the combination of a key, a circuit controller, a lever interposed between the key and the circuit controller', separate from but normally in engagement with said zey, and a spring connected to the.

lever and tending to hold the front end of the key in elevated position, .the spring being arranged to exert on said key a force which diminishes when the front end of the key is depressed.

2. In a key action, the combination of a key, a circuit controller, a lever interposed between the key and the circuit controller, separate from but normally in engagement withV said key, a spring connected to the lever and tending to hold the front end of the key in elevated position, the spring being arranged to exert on said key a force which diminishes when the front end of the key'is depressed, and means for regulating the action of said spring.

3. In a key action, the combination of a key, a circuit controller, a pivotally-mounted lever interposed between the key and the circuit controller, separate Jfrom but 'non mally in engagement with said key, a spring connected to said lever and extending in such direction with respect to its pivotal axis as to exert on the key a torce tending to elevate the front end of the latter and diminishing when said iront end of the key is depressed, and means for varying the distance between the line of action of the spring and the pivotal axis of the lever.

4. In a key action, the combination of a key, a pivotally-mounted lever having its front end resting freely on and supported by the rear end of the key, a tension spring connected at its front end to said lever and extending rearward in a direction passing beneath the pivotal axis of the latter, a vertical adjusting screw to which the rear end of said spring is secured, and a circuit-controller arranged to be operated by said lever.

5. In a key action, the combination of a key, a. pivotally-mounted lever having one of its arms resting on the key, a spring contact linger resting on the other arm of the lever and normally held thereby in elevated position, a contact bar located beneath said spring finger in position to make contact with the latter when lowered, and a. sprintr acting on said lever in such direction as to exert on the key a force tending to elevate the front end of the latter and diminishing when said front end of the key is depressed.

6. In a key action, the combination of a key, a fixed support located behind the same. a lever pivotally-mounted on and having its front end resting freely on the rear end of the key, a plurality ot independent spring contact lingers located side by side with their free ends resting on the rear end of the lever and normally hold thereby in elevated position, a contact bar located beneath said spring fingers in position to make contact with the latter when lowered, and a spring connected to said lever and tending to depress the front end of the latter.

Signed by me at Boston, Massachusetts, this seventeenth day of October, 1916.

WALTER o, REED.

said support 

